INTERNATIONAL CONFEDERATION Minutes of the Thirtieth General Assembly Kavala, Greece, 9:00 am Monday, 4 September 2006

ADMINISTRATION

1) IPSC Secretary to present a list of voting Regions and proxies

Executive Council Present: IPSC President Mr. Nick Alexakos IPSC General Secretary Mr. Fritz Gepperth IPSC Secretary Mr. Vince Pinto IPSC Treasurer Mr. Ren Henderson IROA President Mr. Dino Evangelinos IROA Vice-president Mr. Juergen Tegge

Regions Present: 21 Australia Mr. Des Lilley Belgium Mr. Yvan Vogels Czech Republic Mr. Josef Horejsi Denmark Mr. Tim Andersen Ecuador Mr. Victor Ferrero Finland Mr. Timo McKeown France Mr. Alain Joly Germany Mr. Fritz Gepperth Greece Mr. Dimitrios Tzimas Hong Kong Mr. Vince Pinto (alternate) Israel Mr. Nachum Zarzif Italy Mr. Riccardo Massantini Netherlands Mr. Kees Guichelaar Norway Mr. Geir Owe Philippines Mr. Rey Ganaban (alternate) Russia Mr. Vitaly Kryushin Slovak Republic Mr. Damjian Pesek South Africa Mr. Daan Kemp Switzerland Mr. Milan Stojanovic Thailand Mr. Peter Walker (alternate) United Kingdom Mr. Graham Gill

Voting Regions: (36) The following Regions were eligible to vote and were either present at the meeting or submitted a valid proxy form, as indicated by italics:

Argentina Aruba Australia Austria Belgium Brazil Canada Czech Republic Denmark Ecuador Finland France Germany Greece Hong Kong Hungary Indonesia Israel Italy Macau Malta Netherlands New Zealand Norway Papua New Guinea Philippines Russia Singapore Slovenia South Africa Switzerland Thailand United Kingdom United States Venezuela Zimbabwe

2) IPSC President to appoint two tellers Mr. Myro Lopez (PHI) Mr. Joey Racaza (PHI)

3) IPSC Executive Council Reports Individual verbal reports were given by each Executive Council member.

IPSC President Regional Directors, Delegates, Ladies and Gentlemen...

Welcome to the 30th General Assembly of the International Practical Shooting Confederation.

First, let me begin by thanking IPSC Greece for hosting this General Assembly and, of course, for hosting this most exciting European Shotgun Championship.

Because this General Assembly marks our 30th anniversary, I thought I would begin by sharing with you some historic background that forms the origins of practical shooting.

No individual did more to develop practical shooting than . A retired colonel in the US military, he was influenced by a number of people who also made major contributions to practical marksmanship.

Two such men were Majors Fairbairn and Sykes of the British military, who in the 1930s were in charge of training the Shanghai police. These two gentlemen developed training techniques with semi-auto pistols and Fairbairn later wrote a book about his Shanghai experiences called "Shooting To Live with the One- Hand Gun." Jeff Cooper made reference to this book many times in his own writings.

Another influential person was Ed McGivern, a handgun enthusiast from Montana who had the time and ability to learn skills with a revolver that have seldom been equaled. He was also a supporter of ‘practical’ shooting, and in his book, published in 1937 he used the term ‘practical shooting’ to describe a style of shooting.

The 1950's saw great interest in the Old West, western movies, and cowboys. So it was no surprise that there was considerable activity in ‘fast draw’ competition using western rigs and single-action revolvers. Many movie and television stars at the time made much of their great fast draw abilities.

By the later 1950’s it was estimated that over 5,000 fans were slapping leather from coast to coast in the United States. There is no way of estimating how many more indulged in the past time, but the number had to be considerable.

However, the lack of proper training, or in many cases, no training at all led to dozens of accidents by people who were ‘slow on the draw and quick on the trigger.’

The increase in accidents were giving the a black eye and something had to be done. The answer was to allow only wax loads and blanks to be used in fast draw.

For Jeff Cooper and his friends, the idea of using guns to make a fast noise seemed pretty silly and so they initiated their own ‘Leatherslap’ competition at Big Bear Lake, using only balloon targets at first. The shooter to break his balloon first won, and full power ammunition was used.

These events proved so popular that competitors asked for a match every month, and the Bear Valley Gunslingers was formed. Jeff Cooper said of that time, "In those days our primitive pistol matches were conceived primarily as an amusement but with a secondary goal of creative adventure. None of us knew exactly what he was trying to accomplish, apart from firing a better score than his comrades, but we had a great deal of fun and we learned by doing."

The most striking feature of this competition was that it was relatively unrestricted. Calibers had to be full power .38 Special or better, but otherwise equipment, shooting position, etc. were up to the shooter. One result of this was that a Deputy Sheriff named Jack Weaver started to win. While other shooters were still single handed hip shooting, Jack Weaver would take his gun in both hands, take it to eye level, and fire. Time and again he showed that he wouldn't always get off the first shot, but he would win by scoring the first hit.

The 1960's and early 1970's saw continuous growth and development of practical shooting. Jeff Cooper had a huge reading audience through his column in Guns & Ammo, and generated world-wide interest in this new sport. He wrote, "It was apparent we had something new and attractive. All over the free world sportsmen were beginning to discover that there were more exciting and relevant ways to pursue sport with their than they had known before. By 1973 it was evident the time had come for a world-wide organization of sportsmen seeking further excellence in competition with sidearms."

On May 24, 1976, the Columbia Conference was held at Columbia, Missouri. In Cooper's words, it was "a meeting of enthusiasts throughout both the United States and the world, attempting to devise some sort of international organization. With no authority but our own enthusiasm we set up the International Practical Shooting Confederation, with representation in fourteen nations."

At the conclusion of the Columbia conference, a constitution was established and the IPSC was officially formed. Jeff Cooper acted as chairman of the conference and was elected the first IPSC world president.

To really appreciate the extent of the practical shooting revolution, consider the handgun shooting scene in the 1960’s. The only international handgun competition was at the Olympics, and in the United States the NRA bullseye course was the accepted standard. The pistol of choice was a revolver. There were no moderately priced progressive reloaders, no electronic timers, and no race guns. There were few gun magazines, and none dedicated solely to . Television and movie detectives carried snub-nosed revolvers and fired them one-handed from the hip.

A lot of rounds have gone downrange since Jeff Cooper and his friends started slapping leather back in 1956… and for that we will always be eternally grateful.

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I am pleased to report that last year we continued our upward trend. Global memberships were up on average 4% and our Level III competitions increased by almost 10%.

Every year IPSC grows and strengthens because of the hard work of our Regional Directors and on behalf of the IPSC Executive Council, I would like to thank all of you for your tremendous effort.

I would also like to thank the IPSC Executive Council:

Mr. Fritz Gepperth - IPSC General Secretary Mr. Ren Henderson - IPSC Treasurer Mr. Vince Pinto - IPSC Secretary Mr. Dino Evangelinos - IROA President Mr. Juergen Tegge - IROA Vice-President

And thank the members of the President's Council:

Mr. Tim Andersen (DEN) Mr. Neil Beverley (GBR) Mr. Bob Chittleborough (GBR) Mr. Victor Ferrero (ECU) Mr. Luiz Frota (BRA) Mr. Alain Joly (FRA) Mr. Michael Voigt (USA)

I would also like to thank our IPSC webmaster, Mr. Ian Fachie, who thanklessly manages our web site, Mr. Chris Zielinski for his continuing work with WinMSS, and the Committee Chairmen for their work and deliberations.

Our future remains full of challenges… and promise. Now it’s up to all of us to carry the torch for the next 30 years.

DVC Nick Alexakos IPSC President

4) Introduction of, and brief report from, each Regional Director Each Regional Director spoke briefly about the latest news from their respective Regions.

5) Approval of the minutes of the Twenty-Ninth IPSC General Assembly 1. Motion: That the minutes of the previous Assembly held in Guayaquil, Ecuador on 20 August 2005 as circulated to the Regions be accepted.

Moved: Australia Seconded: Norway Carried: For-36 Against-0 Abstain-0

6) IPSC Treasurer's Report and approval of the previous year's accounts 2. Motion: That the 2005 accounts as circulated to the Regions be accepted. Moved: Netherlands Seconded: Denmark Carried: For-35 Against-0 Abstain-1

7) Appointment of an auditor 3. Motion: That the chartered accounting firm of Kapadia and Company, Chartered Accountants, be appointed as Auditors for financial year 2006. Moved: Greece Seconded: Finland Carried: For-36 Against-0 Abstain-0

8) IPSC Development Plan 4. Motion: That the 2006 IPSC Development Plan be approved. Moved: Finland Seconded: Germany Carried: For-36 Against-0 Abstain-0

It was recommended that future IPSC Development Plans only be submitted at the General Assembly held in conjunction with a World Shoot.

9) Regional Development Director’s Report A report was given by Chairman Vince Pinto on the work of this committee, which is comprised of Chepit Dulay (PHI), Victor Ferrero (ECU), Fritz Gepperth (GER) and Rico Viljoen (NAM).

10) Ratification of Regions provisionally accepted by the IPSC Executive Council 5. Motion: That the Moldova be provisionally accepted for one year. Moved: Germany Seconded: Greece Carried: For-36 Against-0 Abstain-0

11) Final acceptance of Regions previously accepted provisionally by the IPSC Assembly 6. Motion: That the Republic of Ireland be definitively accepted. Moved: Hong Kong Seconded: United Kingdom Carried: For-36 Against-0 Abstain-0

7. Motion: That Ukraine be definitively accepted. Moved: Slovenia Seconded: Germany Carried: For-36 Against-0 Abstain-0

The Assembly welcomes the newly accepted Regions and wishes them all the best of success. The IPSC Secretary advised that the two Regions definitively accepted are not yet in a voting position. No action was required by the tellers.

12) Declaration of vacant Regions when more than ninety days in arrears Our records show the following Regions are in arrears and risk becoming declared vacant. If there is any question concerning this situation, please contact this office immediately (Section 10.8 of the Constitution).

8. Motion: That Georgia be declared vacant if not in good standing by 31st December, 2006. (requires 3/4 vote) Moved: Netherlands Seconded: Germany Carried: For-35 Against-0 Abstain-1

9. Motion: That Mexico be declared vacant if not in good standing by 31st December, 2006 (requires 3/4 vote). Moved: Ecuador Seconded: Philippines Carried: For-36 Against-0 Abstain-0

10. Motion: That Netherlands Antilles be declared vacant if not in good standing by 31st December, 2006. (requires 3/4 vote) Moved: Netherlands Seconded: Ecuador Carried: For-35 Against-0 Abstain-1

11. Motion: That Taiwan be declared vacant if not in good standing by 31st December, 2006. (requires 3/4 vote) Moved: Germany Seconded: Denmark Carried: For-33 Against-0 Abstain-3

13) Ratification of IPSC Peru Suspension 12. Motion: That the General Assembly ratifies the suspension by the IPSC Executive Council of the affiliation of IPSC Peru under Section 5.9 of the IPSC Constitution.. (requires 3/4 vote) Moved: Netherlands Seconded: Germany Carried: For-36 Against-0 Abstain-0

The IPSC President advised that after the suspension came into effect, the situation in Peru had been corrected, and the IPSC President thanked IPSC Ecuador Regional Director Victor Ferrero for his assistance with the matter.

14) Annual Regional Status recognition The IPSC President presented awards to the following Regions in recognition of their performance for the 2005 calendar year:

Top Three Regions Overall: 1st Brazil 2nd Germany 3rd Philippines

Most Improved Region: Bulgaria

ORGANIZATION

15) IROA Executive Committee Report Mr. Kees Guichelaar, Chairman of the IROA Executive Committee, gave an updated report to the Assembly.

13. Motion: That the IROA Member's Handbook be adopted. Moved: Switzerland Seconded: South Africa Carried: For-34 Against-2 Abstain-0

It was requested that the IROA Executive Committee revise the current requirement for aspiring members to gain a specific number of points in Handgun matches, and that points earned in any Level III match be acceptable.

It was further recommended that all current and future IROA Members receive specific training and be separately endorsed to officiate in each of the three IPSC disciplines (i.e. Handgun, Shotgun and ).

16) Rules Committee report In the absence of Chairman Michael Voigt, an updated report to the Assembly was given by Handgun Rules Chairman, Mr. Vince Pinto.

14. Motion: That the July 2006 interpretations of the Handgun Competition Rules, January 2006 Edition as published on the IPSC website, be ratified.

Moved: Finland Seconded: Philippines Carried: For-34 Against-2 Abstain-0

15. Motion: That the July 2006 interpretations of the Shotgun Competition Rules, January 2006 Edition as published on the IPSC website, be ratified.

Moved: Switzerland Seconded: Germany Carried: For-33 Against-2 Abstain-1

16. Motion: That the July 2006 interpretations of the Rifle Competition Rules, January 2006 Edition as published on the IPSC website, be ratified.

Moved: South Africa Seconded: Norway Carried: For-33 Against-2 Abstain-1

17) 1911 (Single Stack) Division 17. Motion: That IPSC General Assembly will discuss Motion 18, provisional amendment of IPSC rules titled 'IPSC 1911 provisional Division' notwithstanding that this is not an Assembly held in conjunction with a World Championship (IPSC Constitution Section 13 requires 2/3 vote).

Moved: Czech Republic Seconded: Finland Denied: For-8 Against-28 Abstain-0

18. Motion: That the 1911 (Single Stack) division be recognized as provisional during 2007 under the IPSC rules titled 'IPSC 1911 provisional Division'.

In view of the vote under Motion 17, this motion was automatically denied, however the IPSC President moved discussion to Any Other Business.

18) Production Division Committee report Chairman Vince Pinto gave an updated report to the Assembly on the work of his committee, which is comprised of Tim Anderson (DEN), Fritz Gepperth (GER), George Giamarellos (GRE) and Doug Lewis (CAN).

19) Course Of Fire Committee Report Juergen Tegge gave a report to the Assembly.

20) Seminar Services Committee Report Chairman Neil Beverley gave an updated report to the Assembly.

21) Competition Services Committee Report No report was available for the Assembly.

22) Promotional Services Committee Report No report was available for the Assembly.

23) Environmental Services Committee Report No report was available for the Assembly.

COMPETITIONS

24) 2007 European Championship report from the Slovak Republic 19. Motion: That the 2007 European Handgun Championship be held in the Region to be determined by vote of this Assembly (European Regions only to vote on the venue).

Moved: Belgium Seconded: Finland Carried: For-35 Against-0 Abstain-1

After some discussion, IPSC Slovak Republic officially withdrew as host of the 2007 European Handgun Championship, which prompted the IPSC President to call for other potential host Regions to step forward.

IPSC France was the only Region to confirm their willingness and ability to host the 2007 European Handgun Championship, the following amended Motion was submitted:

19a. Motion: That the 2007 European Handgun Championship be hosted by IPSC France (European Regions only to vote).

Moved: Finland Seconded: Greece Carried: For-14 Against-0 Abstain-0 (No proxies)

25) 2007 AustralAsia Handgun Championship update report from Thailand IPSC Thailand delegate Mr. Peter Walker gave a visual presentation and a verbal report on the progress of the arrangements for the 2007 AustralAsia Handgun Championship.

26) 2008 World Shoot update report from Indonesia In the absence of a delegate from IPSC Indonesia, IPSC Secretary Vince Pinto gave a brief report to the Assembly.

IPSC Secretary Vince Pinto also gave the General Assembly a brief outline of the new World Shoot website which he is developing, and which would be activated for WSXV in Indonesia.

27) 2009 European IPSC Shotgun Championship venue 20. Motion: That the 2009 European Shotgun Championships be held in the Region to be determined by vote of this Assembly (European Regions only to vote on the venue).

Moved: Belgium Seconded: Finland Denied: For-34 Against-0 Abstain-2

IPSC Czech Republic and IPSC Russia both expressed an interest in hosting the subject match, neither Region was yet in a position to formally bid, and it was agreed that the should matter be deferred to the next Assembly. As such, the following amended Motion was submitted:

20a. Motion To Table: That the matter of the 2009 European Shotgun Championship be tabled until the 2007 General Assembly.

Moved: Greece Seconded: Germany Carried: For-21 Against-0 Abstain-0 (No proxies)

28) 2009 Pan-American Handgun Championship venue IPSC Ecuador being the sole candidate, Regional Director Mr. Victor Ferrero gave a brief report to the General Assembly.

21. Motion: That the 2009 Pan-American Handgun Championship be held in the Region of Ecuador.

Moved: Greece Seconded: Netherlands Carried: For-36 Against-0 Abstain-0

29) World IPSC Rifle Championship venue 22. Motion: That the World IPSC Rifle Championship be held in a year and a Region to be determined by vote of this General Assembly.

Moved: Denmark Seconded: Netherlands

As no regions were yet in a position to formally bid to host the subject match, it was agreed that the matter be deferred to the next Assembly. The following amended Motion was submitted:

22a. Motion To Table: That the matter of the first IPSC World Rifle Championship be tabled until the 2007 General Assembly.

Moved: Denmark Seconded: Finland Carried: For-21 Against-0 Abstain-0 (No proxies)

30) World Combined Three-Gun Championship 23. Motion: That the World Combined Three-Gun Championship be held in a year and a Region to be determined by vote of this Assembly.

Moved: France Seconded: Belgium

The IPSC President then made a brief presentation on the value of linking the World Combined Three-Gun Championship, which would crown the ‘Best Shooter in the World’, to an established Level IV competition, and explained that IPSC Ecuador was willing and able to host the first World Combined Three-Gun Championship with the 2009 Pan-American Handgun Championship, and the following amended Motion was submitted:

23a. Motion That the first IPSC World Combined Three-Gun Championship hosted by IPSC Ecuador in conjunction with the 2009 Pan-American Handgun Championships.

Moved: Hong Kong Seconded: Germany Carried: For-21 Against-0 Abstain-0 (No proxies)

GENERAL

31) Date and place of next IPSC General Assembly 24. Motion: That the 2007 General Assembly be held in conjunction with the competition to be determined by vote of this Assembly.

Moved: Netherlands Seconded: Denmark Carried: For-36 Against-0 Abstain-0

Candidates: France (European Handgun Championship) Thailand (AustralAsia Handgun Championship)

After conducting a vote by ballot of the Regions present at the General Assembly, the tellers announced that France had secured 11 of the 21 votes cast.

ANY OTHER BUSINESS

32) Report on the General Association of International Sport Federations (GAISF)

33) WinMSS report IPSC President gave a brief report and discussed future updates.

ANY OTHER BUSINESS

34) Airsoft IPSC Secretary Vince Pinto gave a verbal report to the Assembly on the status of Airsoft sports and presented arguments why IPSC should recognize and embrace Airsoft shooting. After discussion, a show of hands was requested, and the non-binding consensus was against the proposal.

35) Teddy Bear Charity Project Mr. Neil Beverley made a presentation to the Assembly and distributed samples of the teddy bears. After discussion, a show of hands was requested, and the non-binding consensus was in favour of the proposal.

ADJOURNMENT

36) Adjournment 25. Motion: That the 2006 IPSC General Assembly be adjourned.

Moved: Belgium Seconded: Hong Kong Carried: For-36 Against-0 Abstain-0